How often do you use the Pause button?

[Ludens]

OK, this is stupid , but how the heck do I vote on the poll?????? Or I can't as a junior?

Junior members cannot vote for some reason. I guess it is to prevent poll-spamming. Newcomers have a tendency to start polls on subjects that have already been beaten to death in the past (best archer, best cavalry, best faction, and so on).

As for myself, I use the pause key very often for all sorts of reasons. I have tried to use it less, but when I have to give precise orders in a short time it is faster to hit P than to go through the sequence of orders. After all, ancient general could give instructions to their troops before the fight started. I cannot. The game is so fast that I need the extra time that pause gives to accomplish this.

I do admire those who manage to go without.

[zukenft]

instead of "pause" we should have a "slow-mo" button.
I rarely use pause. In fact i rarely used the keyboard in battles. mostly what i press is shift, alt, or ctrl.

[Zenicetus]

I use the pause button because I bought this game to see big armies fighting at least somewhat realistically for the period. Ignoring what the enemy AI does, my own army doesn't use realistic tactics without a fair amount of micromanagement, because the units lack enough initiative and intelligence.

Caesar could have told a cavalry unit to hide in the trees, and wait to charge until the exact moment when the enemy infantry was pinned against the main battle line. My cav unit won't do this... it just sits there. Caesar and Alexander would never have accomplished what they did, with units that require this much micro-management to behave realistically.

And then there's the somewhat clunky camera interface, and the rapid pace of battles. I don't enjoy the mad click-fest required to see a semi-realistic battle played out on the screen without pausing. For me, pausing results in a more historical looking game, and isn't less realistic at all.

It's certainly not "cheating against the AI" either, because the AI can perform, within it's programming limitations, much faster than I can direct my own troops. The proof of that is how fast it deploys troops in a seige defense. I click the start battle button, and the enemy troops appear instantly in their defensive positions. It would take me 5 minutes to get my own troops set up like that, because I'm not just reading unit names off a table and instantly teleporting them to a map coordinate grid. The mechanism I have for selecting a unit and telling it to do something, is much clumsier and more time-consuming than what the AI uses. So if anything, occasional pausing is a balance against the way the AI "cheats" by having a faster way to select and move units. And yes, the AI isn't hard to beat, but I can find other ways to make the battles more challenging, like always fighting with smaller armies than the enemy is using.

[ToranagaSama]

I use the pause button because I bought this game to see big armies fighting at least somewhat realistically for the period. Ignoring what the enemy AI does, my own army doesn't use realistic tactics without a fair amount of micromanagement, because the units lack enough initiative and intelligence.

I can appreciate the reason(s) for which you purchased the game, and respect them. To those reasons, Pausing is used to a different effect than what *most* people are doing.

Caesar could have told a cavalry unit to hide in the trees, and wait to charge until the exact moment when the enemy infantry was pinned against the main battle line. My cav unit won't do this... it just sits there. Caesar and Alexander would never have accomplished what they did, with units that require this much micro-management to behave realistically.

I can understand your point, BUT that's not the game you're playing. The game is not "Sit Back & Watch: Total War". That's the game you're describing with your comment.

In the Total War series, you are BOTH, *Field Commander* and *Unit Commander*. You not only must controly your entire Army, but you must control EACH unit that composes your army. So, taking a full stack RTW army, you must wear 21 hats. (RTW has 20 units, correct?)

Battles in Total War are comprised of these components:

Tactical Planning
(gotta have a battle plan)

Unit Organization
(gotta use some *useful* formation from which you will have *options*. AS well as when things get all dis-organized, gotta have the ability to RE-organize!!)

Execution
(gotta be capable of handling ALL twenty units, know where they are, know what they are doing, know what they are *supposed* to be doing, can't forget about any of them--gotta be in control!)

Resolve
(for want of a better term, this is when all seems lost you use YOUR initiative to find a *way*, some way to pull out victory.)

Knowledge
(You gotta be familiar with the unit *types*, their inherent strengths and advantages, as well as how then can be *used* to advantage/disadvantage that is not so OBVIOUSLY inherent. In other words, just gotta do a little homework---remember experience is the greatest teacher!!)

This is the challenge of the game, to become fairly proficient in these areas. I promise, if you simply become farily proficient you will have little *need* to Pause. THIS is what the Coloseum, the Main Hall and the Dojo are about, to aid ALL of us in becoming *proficient*, imuho.

And then there's the somewhat clunky camera interface, and the rapid pace of battles. I don't enjoy the mad click-fest required to see a semi-realistic battle played out on the screen without pausing. For me, pausing results in a more historical looking game, and isn't less realistic at all.

Oh yes, thank you. I forgot one. True, unfortunately, one MUST master the Interface, clunky or not. There will NEVER be a *perfect* Interface, so one simply must deal with what is given. The interface is NOT a justification.

You are QUITE correct---RTW is on Crack! That reason, and no other, justifies Pausing!!!

Sorry, historical "looking" does not translate into *historic*. If you bought the game for the *Looks*, enjoy. Sa la vie! Though, you must admit the look is not the game's raison d'etre.

It's certainly not "cheating against the AI" either, because the AI can perform, within it's programming limitations, much faster than I can direct my own troops. The proof of that is how fast it deploys troops in a seige defense. I click the start battle button, and the enemy troops appear instantly in their defensive positions. It would take me 5 minutes to get my own troops set up like that, because I'm not just reading unit names off a table and instantly teleporting them to a map coordinate grid. The mechanism I have for selecting a unit and telling it to do something, is much clumsier and more time-consuming than what the AI uses. So if anything, occasional pausing is a balance against the way the AI "cheats" by having a faster way to select and move units. And yes, the AI isn't hard to beat, but I can find other ways to make the battles more challenging, like always fighting with smaller armies than the enemy is using.

First, I just want to address one thing. Computers are DUMB! If you do not know this, then you simply don't know a great deal about computers--and have fallen prey to the myth. As far as computers, lets break it down to the, CPU and Memory chips.*

[M.T.Cicero]

Junior members cannot vote for some reason. I guess it is to prevent poll-spamming. Newcomers have a tendency to start polls on subjects that have already been beaten to death in the past (best archer, best cavalry, best faction, and so on).

Thnx, I was already frustrated by closely observing every button and could-be-button on the page. At the top it says "View results of the poll" or sth like that, but it's not a link and under that there's number of voters I figured that's where the poll should be so I went through all the user cps and stuff, found nothing and was afraid of getting an answer like "It's right up there, u silly blind n00b"

[ToranagaSama]

Thank you for the response.

AI is capable of giving an infinite amount of commands in a milisecond.

So is the human brain.

It's not my fault that AI is totally moronic and can't put up a decent fight. It's CA's fault. It's enough that I give the AI hundreds of thousands denarii during the campaign so it actually raises something better than Easterner Infantry and Principes for me to fight. Now you're telling me that I should help it in the fights to. Maybe it would be best to just let my army stand still the whole battle so maybe once in a while the comp will win. Nobody HAS TO use pause to win, but if you can why not then when it helps?

You're being contradictory.

Just as I originally said. On the one hand the implication is that the AI is "moronic", meaning dumber than you (or any human); and, that you need to handicap the game. THEN, summarily, you state, that no one *needs* it to win.

The OBVIOUS question, then, is why do it?

The AI is moronic, you can win without it, then WHY?

The only kinda arcade element of no pausing is that things are faster and more dynamic but that is also in a way more realistic (aside the fact that gamespeed sux).

My point PRECISELY!!!

In general, the entire Forum makes such an emphasis upon the Historic and Realism; but, all of sudden, Pausing, which is ahistorical and unrealistic, is fine and dandy.

Hey, one wants to pause, great. Enjoy. Everyone should enjoy the game however they wish, just accept the fact that its not realistic and ahistorical.

No, they took a nice 5, 10, 15 miuntes or half an hour to think about the situation and then did the right thing. Without pause I have half a second to make the move, I mean what's *historical* about that? Of course. some decisions have to be made fast but pause won't save you from those anyway.

Perhaps my examples weren't good ones(?).

When you're on the Campaign Map, this is where you have the time to think and make *Strategic* decisions. Here you are NOT in the *field*.

When you're on Battle Map, you are in the place of a Battlefield Commander. You are on the field and commanding the battle. At the opening, sure, a Commander has time to asses the circumstance and make a plan.

After the opening, its all about **INSTANT** decision making.

YES, you are correct in that Command may take "5, 10 15 minutes". Yet, this does not come close to Pausing. The stark reality is that while Commanders take that time----MEN ARE DYING!

Time does not stop.

If they make the *right* decisions---the simple fact is that men will still die, just fewer of them.

Such, is Victory.

This is historical, this is reality, this is how the game *should* be played. You might find it interesting to view the movie "We Were Soldiers", which is a good interpretation of Field Generalship and Tactical fighting, as well as its relationship to *Desktop Generalship* or, more precisely the Tactical Strategists who are always in the rear.

The generals that I had mentioned were, in reality, a combination of both the Field Commander and the Tactical Strategist, which is why they were great. In the American Army, Field Commanders most often hold the rank of, Major, Colonel and Brigadier (1 Star) General.

When playing Total War, on the Campaign/Strategy Map, your equivalent *rank* is above a Brigadier General.

When on the Battle Map, your equivalent rank is either Brigadier General or below.

If you're not American you can use this page to equate the rankings to your national army: Nationmaster

Total War is designed to accomplish one thing, marry, in a game form, the Strategic and the Tactical. Prior to Total War, there were Strategy games (TBS) and Tactical games (RTS).

A player spends all that time, planning, plotting and scheming on the Strategic stage, when you get down to the Tactical battles----that's where everything is on the line.

It's an opportunity to try and get into the shoes of the great field generals, the tacticians. To experience, as much as you can in a game form, the pressure to perform!!! Think fast, Formualte, Execute, all in a split second---that's what its all about.

Win or lose, it'll be the result of your abilities. The next battle you'll be better for the experience, and better still the battle after that, and so on, and so on.... Until the notion of pausing is completely unnecessary. You can't reach that point if you start and continue to pause----and, YES, this means you are going to get you're butt whupped a few times. Just part of the experience.

Granted---RTW battles are so whacked, what does it matter?

Though, if you have hopes of playing Multiplay, Pausing won't help.

In reality the "OMG! I'm about to be flanked." part goes through the brain of those men on the field who are about to be flanked and they do something about it on their own, they don't sit nice, still and tight waiting to be slaughtered, if they are not given a direct order from the head general himself.

You must be playing a different game. Certainly, it can't be ROME: Total War. What was the KEY factor in (overall) Roman battle success, or, if you will initial success (say the first 500 years!)??

Discipline, as in Decimation, the sole purpose of which was to ENSURE precisely the actions of the men do NOT adhere to what their brains are telling them; BUT, to do EXACTLY that----*wait* until " they are given a direct order from the [commander] himself."

Organization and Discipline, these are the keystones of Roman success.

THIS is why they were successful. When others would turn and flee, ROMANS would Stand, Fight and Die.

This is how they were able to conquer the other civilizations (city-states). Roman Organization and Discipline (on the battlefield) began to be less successful against *some* Barbarians, not because Barbarians equaled them in Organization and Discipline, but as a result of their Barbaric traditions which caused them to fight in a *Fearless* manner which, often times, would equate to Roman Discipline.

Some Barbarians would be more Organized than others. When they were both Fearless and (battlefield) Organized, then *often* they were a match for the Romans.

So, you see Pausing cannot be justified on this ground. Not in terms of RTW nor STW (Samurai were the most disciplined of fighting men). MTW may very well be another story---a period in which the lessons from the Romans were lost.

Sure, in MP all of the above is nill, the 2 players are completely equal, both are limited by the speed of their fingers and their brains and they both have equaly stupid soldiers under command so there is really no need for pause.

Your implication is that against the Computer/AI, things are NOT equal. The question then, is *which* has the advantage, or *if* there is any advantage?

If the Computer/AI are considered equal, then there is no overall advantage. So why pause?

If the Human is considered to have the advantage, then, ever more so, why pause?

If the Computer/AI is considered to be advantaged over the Human, then pausing has a more solid justification, though I would strongly argue the point.

---

ToranagaSama also wonders about the reasoning of those who refuse to use "Expert" difficulty (and its equivalent RTW difficulty (yeah, I know its broken)) on the basis that the AI cheats, yet use Pause. Again, seems rather contradictory.

[Colovion]

ToranagaSama, you're my hero.